1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device for operating a damper in an air conditioning system for a vehicle.
2. Description of Related Art
Known in the prior art is an air conditioning system for a vehicle provided with a casing having a plurality of outlets for discharging flows of air into a cabin of the vehicle, dampers for selectively opening or closing the outlets, and a rotary drive device for each respective damper. See Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 1-141116. The rotary drive device comprises an arm holding the damper at one end thereof, a shaft to which the other end of the arm is fixedly connected, a lever connected to the shaft at an end thereof remote from the arm, and an actuator associated with and obtaining a rotary movement of the lever. Usually, an actual arrangement of the air conditioning system in a vehicle will require the provision of a link mechanism between the lever and the actuator, for transmitting the movement of the actuator to the lever, and further, the lever, the actuator and the link mechanism will be arranged outside the casing of the air conditioning apparatus, but such an arrangement of the lever, the actuator, and the link mechanism outside the casing is disadvantageous, in that the system occupies a substantial space when mounted in the vehicle.